


Please, just for tonight...

by ali_bunny1



Category: Powerpuff Girls
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Blossick, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Established Relationship, F/M, Frustration, Late Night Conversations, Love, Mild Language, Passion, Rekindling, Second Chances, Unresolved Emotional Tension, i will add more - Freeform, if i think of new tags, take care of yourself
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-01
Updated: 2020-07-01
Packaged: 2021-03-04 22:40:35
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,762
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25024060
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ali_bunny1/pseuds/ali_bunny1
Summary: Blossom finally has the soul-crushing realization that crime-fighting is no longer worth her sacrifice. The only one capable of pulling her out of this and help her continue living for herself is her ex-boyfriend. Together, they pick up the pieces of her past to help her move forward.
Relationships: Brick/Blossom Utonium
Comments: 8
Kudos: 67





	Please, just for tonight...

Her eyes tried to focus on the top paper in her current pile but she had only been reading the same paragraph for the last thirty minutes unable to grasp its contents. Shoving the pile away from herself, she pulled over her school in its place.  _ Surely, this should be simpler than- _

Blossom's stomach lurched at the sight of her syllabus. How could she have forgotten about her term paper?! The project entailed a lengthy study on old laws and how the government could do away with or rewrite these laws to serve the people of today. No big deal, right? A simple twenty paged paper requiring ten sources due in two days for only forty percent of her major grade. No big deal right? And she hadn't even worked on the rough draft yet.

Blossom’s pupil constricted causing her field of vision to pinhole. Her head spun as the other piles mocked her anguish with their solutions no easier and requiring similar deadlines. She shook her head, there were no coherent thoughts and now, she really didn't have an answer for any of these assignments. She jumped up from her seat, frantically flipping through the piles as she took a look at each page. The words from each page seemed to swirl around her mind, tightening its grip, suffocating her mind until she snapped against its hold on her. With one wave of her hand, she swept her worries off the table, scattering them over the tiled floor. As the last few papers fell, her mind quieted finally. A numbing sensation coursed through her body.

Blossom’s heart raced as her worst fear set in.  _ I can’t do this anymore. _ It was all too much.  _ When was the last time I took a break? When was the last time any of this sacrifice was worth my pain?  _ So long were the optimistic days of hero work having clear cut boundaries. As the world changed, so did the laws. The stronger they got, the more the people feared them and cried for their powers to be banned. Half of the criminals they stopped were just let back out on the streets and oftentimes tried to sue the girls for injuries obtained. Overly obsessed fans never respected their personal space and they had been harassed more times than they wanted to remember. To add to that, professors and teachers were no longer merciful for their tardiness or missed classes. They were expected to do it all. Blossom took the brunt of the legal issues so her sisters could have semi-normal lives.  _ This isn’t worth it anymore.  _ A sheet of glass can only handle but so much tension before it finally shatters under the pressure.

Steady streams traveled down her supple, reddened cheeks, and pooled on her pages.  _ I need help.  _ What made this worse was the daunting knowledge that no one would even come close to understanding what she was feeling. No one bore the same responsibility she did.  _ Except for him… No, you will not call him.  _ Growling at herself, she slammed her fists against the table.  _ You will not call him. He made it clear. Not even he knows-  _ That was a lie. Blossom rubbed at her eyes, lashes thick with tears as she scrolled through her contacts for anyone. Anyone but him.  _ Sally, Billie, Charles, Ron, Jess.  _ The names blurred as she slowly scrolled up towards his name.  _ No, he is the only one who does know. _

She pushed the thought away, _ I'll be damned if he knew. _ Would she really let him see her like this? Not after their fight, not after he broke her heart. He didn’t have the right to see her so defeated again. Sure, they were cordial but that didn't mean- She stared at his name, thumb hovering over the contact. Her pride was on the line here. Blossom just couldn't let him know. She bit her quivering lip,  _ To hell with my pride. I need an out.  _

A dark, gravelly voice answered with a vicious bite, " This better be fucking important." 

" Brick," She couldn’t stop herself from sniffling, " I'm sorry to bother you."

" Then you wouldn't have called me at, god damn it, three fucking thirty in the morning! Blossom, what is it?" Brick sounded more alive now, clear annoyance in his tone but much less of the ferocity in his voice.

" Um, I'm sorry. I didn't have anyone else to call," a soft sob escaped from her despite holding her breath in to strengthen her resolve. She cleared her throat to gain some control over herself but as he had pointed out, it was three and everyone was asleep. She couldn't risk letting her family see her like this at her weakest. It's not like they knew how to help her anyway.

Brick was quiet for a moment as he rubbed the sleep from his eyes, " If you're calling me like this then I know it's serious. What's up? Why are you crying?"

" I just, I don't know what to do anymore. It’s not worth it anymore but it still needs to get done but I don’t have the time. I messed up," Blossom couldn't hear herself getting louder the more hysterical she became. She furiously wiped away at her cheeks trying to ease herself of the situation.

" I don't know what's got to get done but just get it done. It's not a big deal. Like you said in high school, you're a big girl, you can handle it. Weren’t you the one who told me I had nothing to offer you because I could never understand? If you’re just going to call me at ungodly hours-"

" But Brick!" she squeaked in anguish, attempting to be mindful of her sleeping family members, " Wait!"

" Good night, Blossom!"

" Please, Brick, just for tonight," breathy and barely audible, she gave the only plea she could, " Just tonight, can you please not fight with me. I need you. You were the only one who knows."

The only sound that could be heard was the buzzing of the kitchen lightbulb above her head as even the rain had slowed. Her chest was hollow and ached, the words swirling in her head were angry and self-deprecating. Of course, _he hung up. Why would he help after that day?_

A long exasperated sigh finally rolled through the receiver. A soft voice graced her ears, " Stop crying. Give me a few minutes, okay?" 

" What?" She could hardly muster before the line went dead. What was that supposed to mean?  _ Is he going to call back? _ Her eyes fell back onto the mess she made. She couldn't think anymore but she didn't have the time to stop working. Maybe Brick was right to throw her words back at her, she could handle this.  _ Yeah, I got this!  _

_ New Law: Any destroyed property will… _

_ Lawsuit #3562: Financial compensation for the Plaintiff's medical bills… _

_ Law Under Review: The  _

_ God, no. _ She couldn't bear to read another word. Their adoring townspeople quickly became their biggest critics when it came to how much it cost them in taxes. Apparently, a sweet smile from a grown woman saying oops isn't as acceptable as it is from a little kid.  _ I'm over this. I refuse to do this anymore.  _ She placed her face in her hands and sat there hopelessly, waiting for time to consume her so she could be relieved of this burden.

Blossom could feel her phone vibrate. She looked over and read the text, " I'm outside your house." She abandoned the table and peeked through the peephole. A very sleepy Brick stood outside the door, staring right at her. Unlocking the door, she gestured for him to walk in, " I'm sorry, you didn't have to show up." She took note of his flannel pajama pants, black slides with white socks, and red hoodie. The ends of his jaw-length mop of burnt orange tresses were partially upturned.

" It's fine. What do you need help with?" He yawned as he passed her, automatically walking into the lighted space, " Also, I require coffee as payment for my services."

" What?" She followed him into the kitchen, watching him as he looked down at the mess of papers, " I didn't mean for you to come and work. I'll go ahead and make us some fresh coffee."

Brick lifted multiple pages up to his face to discern what anything was. It all just looked the same to him. He stepped over a paper whose ink had been bleeding making it almost illegible. _She's been crying for a while, huh? Our term paper?_ Curious about the tear-stained packet, he asked her, " So, did you do the term paper?" 

The entirety of her body tensed, nearly causing her to drop the washed coffee pot in the sink, " No." With care, she washed some giant mugs for them, " Do you want caffeine or-"

" It's almost four in the morning. What do you think?" He grumbled, haphazardly throwing around some pages.  _ What the hell is all of this? This is all…  _ Brick shook his head at the sheer volume of what these people were requiring from her. They were college students, they didn't have much time to begin with.  _ These fucking people are going to kill her. Has she even gotten proper sleep? _

" Black, right?" the machine sputtered to life as it began to make a fresh pot of coffee. With her back towards him, she added two large scoops of sugar into the cup, careful not to clink loudly with her spoon.

" So you remember?" He shuffled around a few pages, planning what piles should be made, marking each page with the array of highlighters Blossom had set up on the table. He moved quickly around the table as he separated them into smaller piles.

"Of course I do. How could I forget?" she tightened her core against the sarcasm in his voice. She expected him to take a few jabs at her. As she turned around, she nearly dropped the mugs at the sight of her work area spotless.

" I told you, you take on way too much and your organization skills are shit. When you look at it like this, it's much more manageable," he walked over to her and practically snatched the mug from her, " Thank you." Brick guzzled down half of the cup’s contents.

She stepped over to the smaller piles and ran a hand over them, " What did you do?"

" Everything closest to where you're chair is due now. The further the stack, the further the due date," Brick pointed to the pile at the end of the table with his coffee, " Did this help?"

Blossom blinked away tears and nodded. With a sigh of relief, she smiled, " Yeah. Yeah, I can start working through this one now." Her hand went to grip the page but his free hand slapped the pile back down.

" You're delusional if you think you can do anything without any sleep in your system," he looked down into her tired eyes that had long since lost their heartening glow.

Blossom furrowed her brows while she tried to take the paper back out from under him, " Brick, it has to get done! I can't just-" 

" It will get done when you go to sleep. You look pretty exhausted so I think I could take you on if you tried to fight me on this," his voice was more lively and dangerously ominous. With their eyes locked in battle, he pressed more of his weight into the pile to stop her from taking on anymore work.

Blossom could only glare back at him, her mind couldn't produce any thoughts. His glower on her was more trouble than she wanted to deal with so she let go of the page, " Oh, fine! I don't want to go to sleep upstairs though."

"Then come with me, I'll drive around for a bit. Maybe fill me in on why you're being forced to handle all of this," Brick placed the mug down onto the counter and folded his arms over his chest.

Blossom looked down embarrassedly at her monkey print pajama pants and a pink tank top. Sheepishly she said, " Uh, ok. Maybe I should change first." 

“It’s fine, it’s not like I haven’t seen you like this before,” eyeing her over once, he took another long gulp from his cup before placing it back down.

She placed her mug gently against the counter with her face turned away from him to hide her blush. Following him to the front door, Blossom snatched her keys from the hook and locked the door behind her. Brick warmed up the car, waiting for her to close the passenger side door before taking off. He drove fairly fast, speeding up as they got onto the bridge. The ride was mostly quiet with only the humming of the engine filling the space between them. When they reached the highway, " So are you going to start talking?"

Blossom sighed," I let it all get away from me. I took on way too much this time.” She noticed their scenery passing by them at a blazing speed, “ Also, slow down. I don’t care if there are no other cars out at this time. It’s the law."

He scoffed but obediently, he slowed down as he made a turn off of the highway, “Yeah, yeah. I know how to drive. It’s fine there are no cops posted on this road anyway.”

“That’s not the point, Brick,” the ache in her voice was tangible. He couldn’t quite focus on her through his peripheral but he could guess that her eyes carried more strain now because of his driving.

" Fine, I’ll slow down. Anyway, I’ve never understood why you won’t let Bubbles or Buttercup help you? They're fully capable of sharing that burden," Brick eased his foot on the pedal as he drove off onto a side road, following a small path onto an overlook. Besides an abandoned rusted car already stripped for its parts, they were the only people there.

" It's not that they aren't capable, it's that I'm the only one who knows how to manage these things. They don't get how important it is to get all of these things done, besides, I want them to have somewhat normal lives. But as the Powerpuff Girls, we always have to be on par with the most current events. Our image has to stay absolutely clean because if not that could get another one of our powers banned and I can't even count how many times Buttercup has broken those laws," she shook her head, staring out blankly in the night sky but never really focusing.

" It sounds like they gotta step it up then. You can't shoulder all of that yourself," Brick turned the car off, positioning himself to face her better. She was right next to him but her eyes were far away. Elusive as always. It was something he always wished she'd let him in on.

" What do you do? With your brothers?" Her dull eyes settled on him but they were still occupied with other things.

" Those two morons? I delegate. Granted, we aren't saving the lives of ungrateful people but I deal with the brunt of our responsibilities and they know they should be doing everything else to make my life easier like cooking, having the house clean. If they know I have something to do that they can handle, they go out and do it without me asking so I can take a break. It's a team effort. Our common goal is to survive and get the hell away from our fathers. What's your common goal?" 

"Our goal? To fight crime and make Townsville a better place. That's what it's always been," Blossom spoke emptily as she had lost faith in that mantra but she continually repeated it to herself as she tried to convince herself that it was still possible.

" Well, maybe the common goal needs an update. Something's gotta give because if not, you'll lose yourself in it all, and then how could you save others when you can't even save yourself?" His red eyes locked onto her with conviction. He spoke lightly but the words boomed in the enclosed space. He was right. He was right and she hated it.

" I can handle it. I just lost track of time," Blossom shrugged off his gaze. She just had to always have herself put together. 

" Are you kidding me right now? No. You didn't. If it was a matter of a lack of time, you wouldn't have called me the way you did. I'd probably be the last person you'd call now. I know you had to abandon your pride which let's face it, for people like us, that's damn near as bad as dying," he watched her face twist, her eyes glossed over. In the pale dusty blue sky, her pink irises looked lavender. She was clearly pained. He knew that pain, maybe just as intense as she did.

" That is-," she caught the tear traveling down her left cheek.  _ He's right again. _

"You called and said you needed me. Clearly, this runs deeper than running out of time on a few assignments. You're finally realizing that none of the self-imposed savior work is worth it! And that kills you inside," his words were sharp, cutting deep into her ego, stripping her of the last of her pride.

The tears spilled over as she stared at him, mouth opened. This was a common fight they had back when they were dating in high school. He had yelled these words at her every time but she had always convinced herself that he just couldn't understand. She would throw his past at him and argue back how this is what she had to do.

Brick's stomach churned at the sight of her openly weeping. He took a deep breath, " I know this isn't what you want to hear but if you want to continue saving lives, you need to make boundaries for yourself. Don't let them bully you into doing more than you should because Blossom, they'll take and take and take until you become a shallow husk of what you once were. They won't even think twice about it and you know it."

Blossom shook her head, her eyes were a million miles away again, " Who am I without this task that I was entrusted with then?"

"You would know that if you gave yourself the same break you give your sisters. I don't see how this could have ever made you happy," he spoke in a hushed tone but it was enough to spark her rage.

" I haven't even- ha," Blossom scoffed, shaking her head unwilling to face what she was about to say, " I haven't been happy in years. I have given so much of myself to this city and at every turn, " she hit the glove compartment, "AT EVERY TURN WE PAY THE PRICE! I DON'T NEED A DAMN PARADE, I DON'T WANT A STATUE OF US IN THE TOWN PARK! I JUST WANTED US SAVING PEOPLE TO BE ENOUGH!" Her shoulders shook with anger as it felt like her heart was being ripped out from her chest. She whispered, " Why aren't I enough?"

" Blossom, the problem is you were more than enough," he claimed with certainty as he stifled a yawn. Brick could see the wheels in her head turn as she was finally piecing it all together. The walls of the empire she had built up all these years was crumbling, disintegrating down until there was only its foundation.

Blossom, finally present, looked him in his eyes, " I'm sorry, Brick." 

Brick blinked a few times. Had he heard that right? Was she really apologizing? He had wished for her to come to this conclusion when they were dating but it never came. He had abandoned the idea that he would ever hear her come close to admitting everything she just had. It didn't feel as good as he hoped it would have, especially seeing her so broken down.  _ What do I even say?  _ " Do you finally get what I meant two years ago?"

She nodded apologetically, " Yes. I just… saving lives is all I know, Brick. I still love it. Where do I even go from here?"

Brick sighed, exiting the car and moving into the back seat, " Come on. You're gonna sit back here with me and relax. You can figure that out after you get some rest."

She eyed the seat next to him, " Okay." She joined him in the back seat and stared out over the city. Some office lights were beginning to turn on, making the city twinkle at the start of this new day. A chill ran down her spine, her breath made small clouds in the cold car. 

Brick pulled her into his side, " I'm not making a move. I just thought this would be more comfortable. When was the last time you got a proper night's sleep?"

She eased herself against him, using the hood of his sweater to cushion her neck as she used to do. Wincing, she confessed, " Um, it's been a while but if you mean more recently, I'm running on ten hours of sleep in the last three days."

" Yeah, no wonder you look like shit," he growled as she got more comfortable against him. Her exposed skin froze him even with his sweater on. Brick controlled his body temperature to combat hers.

" Gee, thanks," she rolled her eyes as her body remembered where her curves fit against his. 

He hummed, leaning against the window, " No problem." They hadn't done something like this since senior year where they spent most nights in secret together. 

“Talk to me. We haven’t done this in ages,” Blossom unfocused her sight, causing the lights to take on a starburst shape.

“What about?” Brick kept his voice even but his heart jumped. They had agreed to never speak about their relationship again. It was just too painful. Well, it was for him anyway.

Sleep already saturated in her voice, “Anything.”

Brick looked out at the lights, “Anything? Okay. My coding project is almost complete finally. I just need to work out a few more bugs in it and-”

“No. No work. Something happy.”

_ Happy? Does she even know who she’s talking to?  _ Brick wracked his brain for a happy memory or story, " All of my happy memories are with you. You really want to open this can of worms? Tonight?" 

She let out a puff of air, a half-laugh, " Sure. Why not? We've already gone this far. No point in acting like nothing's ever happened."

Surprised by her answer, he nodded. Finally, it came to him, he gently squeezed her shoulder. With his lips nearly at her ear, he murmured, “Remember back when we were together, we went to that observatory?” 

She hummed, lips barely making the effort to form the words, “Yeah, that was so fun. If you would've stopped complaining, that day would've been perfect.”

“ Yeah, yeah. It's my storytime so hush. You said we should dance under the starlight projector and I told you that sounded lame but you grabbed me anyway?” He waited for an acknowledgment from her before continuing, “Well, I’m glad you did. I never told you but as cheesy as it was, the way you looked under the stars was- Blossom?” He peered over at her.

“ I’m awake. Continue,” she sounded a bit more alert. More of her weight was pressing against his side. He forgot how nicely she fit against him, how good she felt against him.

“ I loved seeing you under the fake starlight," he took a moment, " I wish I could've seen you under real starlight."

She smiled, only one side of her mouth was upturned, " See, I told you. That was our three-month celebration date. You looked really handsome that night."

" 'scuse you, I always look great but thank you," he chuckled, " Alright, your turn." 

Blossom crawled into the depths of her memories. She had seen and experienced so much in her nineteen years. Sadly, almost all of them were attached to work. She pursed her lips, " I think one of my happiest memories was when you first convinced me to sneak out and drive around with you all night. I was so scared about getting in trouble but I think that was the first time I really felt free."

" Ugh, you were such a prude. It wasn't even that big of a deal!" Brick sucked his teeth. She was always so concerned over the trivial things. They weren't breaking any laws and it wasn't like her dad hadn't gone through the same issue with the other sisters.

" You forget, I don't like to disappoint and I didn't want to get in trouble like Buttercup always did. Anyway, tell me your best memory, " she pouted although he couldn't see. Blossom could feel the sleep creeping over her, slowly taking root.

Brick shook his head. He only treasured one memory over them all but he shuddered at the thought of saying it.  _ Would that be too far?  _ With a deep breath of courage, he uttered one word, "Prom." There were so many implications for what that meant for them. Drunken kisses, slow dances, loving whispers, night rides, and of course, some other unspoken firsts.

" Prom, " she whispered back, her eyebrow twitched, " It hurts to think about it." Despite actually feeling her heartache, her body remembered how gentle he was and it craved for that love she had only ever experienced with him.

It did hurt. The level of vulnerability shared between them that night was unmatched. To have met their painful end just two weeks later had soured that memory. Brick's thumb rubbed circles against her bicep, " You know what really hurts?" 

"Hm?" She turned her head against the crook of his neck, partially laying on his chest as she breathed in his scent.

" Seeing you continue to put yourself through this when you deserve to be happy," he adjusted his body temperature again to even out with hers creating a mild environment against the frigid air this January morning. 

" Be happy with you?" Blossom was definitely more asleep at this point as her words came out in half sounds.

" I always hoped so, " He could hear her snore finally. This always puts her right to sleep. As long as he was professing his love to her, she would be able to rest. " If only you would've actually given us a chance and not given up on me," he pulled her closer against himself. Even after two years, he missed her strawberry scent dearly. Breathing deeply, he took in what scents of her he could make out from his own before falling asleep.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Brick woke up at around ten with his arm tingling, the glass against his face was chilled. Blossom was still fast asleep more curled up against his body and he didn't have it in him to push her off. With his left hand, he rubbed the sleep out of his eyes. There was a buzzing sound echoing somewhere from the front seat. With a quick stretch, he latched onto the pink phone and checked the caller ID. Bubbles. " Hey."

There was a pause, " Brick? You're with Blossom? Where is she? Is she okay?"

" Yeah, yeah. She's fine. She's just sleeping. Hey, can I talk to you about something?" He held the phone away from his face to make sure he hadn’t accidentally put her on speaker.

" She left all her work out here on the table and that's not like her! She didn't even- Hey wait, are you two back together?" The blonde was easily working herself up and losing track of what she really wanted to know.

" Bubbles, Bubbles. Your sister is fine. She's with me. If you're going to be hysterical this early in the morning then I need you to put Buttercup on," Brick swore that if his brothers didn't do it first, these girls would be the death of him. 

" Yo. Is everything okay? Why is Bubbles panicking?" Buttercup's voice was rough and deep.

" Buttercup, everything's fine. I need you to do something. On the kitchen table, I left five piles of paperwork organized. Did you see them?"

" I'm looking at them now."

" Good. The one marked with a green star is stuff you can handle. The one with a blue star is for Bubbles to take care of and the pink is for Blossom's immediate attention. The other two piles are yellow and orange, yellow can wait and orange is bullshit she shouldn't be in charge of so give it back to whoever assigned it to her. Got it?"

" Color-coded and orange is to dump, " Brick could tell by the gruff, choppy attitude in Buttercup's voice, she had clearly just woken up.

" Close enough. Blossom will be home soon," Brick hung up the phone, relaxing back against the window. He adjusted his arm under her, pulling her in tighter with her mouth nearly grazing his neck. 

After another couple of hours, Blossom sat up and stretched. She turned to Brick who only watched her, " What time is it?" her joints cracked and popped after being stuck in the same position for so long.

" Noon."

She hopped up, smashing her head up against the roof, " OWE! BRICK! NOON?! I HAVE TO GET BACK! BRICK, WHY DID YOU LET ME SLEEP SO LONG! I STILL HAVE THINGS TO DO! EVEN MORE SO NOW!" 

" Good afternoon to you too, sweetheart. It's fine, don't worry about it. It's all being handled. Watch," Brick grabbed his phone and face timed Buttercup, " Yo. How's the work going?"

" Bubbles and I finished our piles. The orange one got taken back to the Mayor's office for revisions. It's just Blossom's homework and some other stuff. Oh, good morning sleeping beauty," Buttercup waggled her brows at the alarmed Blossom, “So when did you two get back together?”

" Thanks, Buttercup. We gotta go," Brick didn’t want to talk about that with anyone but Blossom.  _ Unless she wanted to. _

" Wait, before you two come back here from shacking up if you could pick us up some lunch, that would be nice. Thanks. I owe you."  **Click.**

" Damn it. Shit, she's always getting me to pay for food and she eats like a damn animal," he sighed. Focusing on Blossom again, he rubbed her back, " I never told you to give up crime-fighting. I just told you to make boundaries. See, your sisters are capable of working on things without giving up too much of their lives and there are things you can say no to. You only need to focus on the shit they give us at school and your own needs. That's what's really important." Brick monitored the side of her face as she processed everything that had been said last night. 

" Brick," she rubbed her face in relief, " Thank you." She leaned back down against him.

" No problem. I'm just glad you finally get it. How are you feeling?" He hesitantly wrapped his arm around her once more, taking note that she didn't recoil from his touch.

She nodded, " Better. Seriously, thank you so much. You really have no idea what this means to me."

" I do," his eyes fell steadily onto hers. She was beautiful when she wasn't constantly berating him, " Alright, we should get going. Lunch is on me so what are you in the mood for?"

" Burgers sound good," her mouth watered at the thought. She had been so consumed by everything that she had forgotten about dinner from the night before.

" So while we were together you never had a damn clue but now that we aren’t… Fine, you've got it. Come on," they both climbed into the front seats and drove down the roads in silence but Brick could feel the positive shift in her energy.

" I'm nervous about notifying the Mayor's office that we're pulling back on our services but I'm looking forward to finally being able to have some more me time," Blossom leaned closer to him, placing her forehead on his right shoulder. She pulled back up and stared at his profile. Her heartbeat quickened forming a knot in her chest.  _ That's right…  _ She had forgotten how he made her feel. Rather, she had shoved those memories and feelings aside because it just… hurt too much.  _ If only you wouldn't have been so selfish. _

" You're right but… what?" Brick glanced over at her before turning back towards the road.

" Nothing,” her eyes never left his face, “ You know I wouldn’t call someone at three in the morning, normally.”

“ I know. You’re the only person who can get away with that for me,” he smiled hoping she would pick up on his intended tone. Brick got off of the bridge into Townsville and turned into the nearest drive-in burger joint.

She scoffed, placing her hand against his forearm. Normally, he would've shrugged her off of him but the truth was, he didn't want her to let go.  _ Not this time. _ He rolled down his window and placed their order. As the long list came to an end, he turned to her with a pure and tender gleam in his eye, honey in his voice, " Kitten, you want a chocolate milkshake?" 

Time and space between them abruptly stopped, the only thing that could be heard was their breathing. Blossom's mouth opened, her heartbeat quickened.  _ He hasn't called me that in forever.  _ Neither dared to break eye contact. Blossom caught his face twist when he realized his slip of the tongue. Neither sure of what to say next.

" Uh, sir? Hello?" A scratchy echo boomed from the speaker box, shattering the asphyxiating tension.

Brick pulled his eyes from hers, stumbling over his words, " Uh, y-yeah. Sorry about that. Yeah, a small chocolate milkshake with three cherries on top. That's it." 

" Okay sir, that's gonna be $43.18. Drive up to the next window."

Brick slowly drove up to the next window keeping his hands firmly gripping the steering wheel at the 10 and 2 positions. With her hands in her lap, she traced the lines in her palm. Her breathing had become shallow as her fight or flight responses kicked in. What some people don't know is that there's a third option: freeze. Both of them frozen in the painfully awkward atmosphere they had created. 

Brick passed the bags of food over to her, careful not to let their fingers touch. The last thing he handed to her was the milkshake. After paying, he rolled up his window and sped off. Blossom pressed the cherries down to the bottom of her cup, smashing them with her straw to get a hint of flavor from each sip. With a quick sip, she cleared her throat, " So, how have you been?"

He raised his right brow and joked, " Really? Small talk when I see you most days anyway? Okay, then. Pass me a fry."

Blossom reached into the brown paper bag and pulled out his order of french fries. She held one up to his mouth, " The word is please and say ah."

Brick's face burned, turning a bright scarlet hue, " Uh-huh. I've been fine. Nothing new. I'd ask about you but I think it's obvious nothing's new."

" For that stupid comment, you're losing a fry, " she bit into a fry, giggling before feeding him another, " You could still ask."

" I bought you your own fries! Fine, how have you been? Such a dumb question, " he mumbled under his breath. He flinched from the swat she aimed at him, laughing at her puffed out cheeks.

" Besides work, I've been okay," Blossom shrugged her shoulders. She munched on another french fry in a thoughtful manner. 

" Wow, riveting," he snorted, " Another fry, please."

" It's not like you've done anything exciting either! Say ah," she held the fry up to his lips mimicking the action herself.

" Ah, mm. Thank you," he bit down, pretending to bite her finger. 

She pulled her hand away swiftly, " Ah! That's not funny!" Although that's what she claimed, she had loved it when he played with her like this. There was no way they could do this in front of the others without being mercilessly teased.

" It is to me. Honestly-" he was getting ready to tease her but she immediately cut him off. 

The question was a loaded one with her voice reflecting the fear she had swallowed down just two years ago, " Are you seeing anyone?"

_ She was bound to ask.  _ Part of his old self wanted to be vindictive and say anything just to hurt her the way she had hurt him but part of him hoped that maybe something between them was still possible. " No," he swallowed coarsely. After a sip of his soda, he croaked out, " You?"

Before he could finish asking, she confirmed, " No." Silence. " Brick, can I ask you something?"

" You just did but ok," he smirked, taking joy in the fact that he knew that would irk her.

She had to sidestep her annoyance. " When you broke up with me," she watched as his jaw tightened but she continued, " you really hurt me. Why didn't you ever apologize to me for what you did?"

He cocked his head to the side, " I didn't think I had to. Seeing as I did nothing wrong and that wasn't the reason why we broke up. Shouldn't I be the one asking you why you didn't allow me to explain what happened?" Brick let out a low growl at her, " Regardless, why does this matter now anyway?"

" I think it's obvious why I'm bringing this up now," she slurped at the milkshake through her pink and white swirled straw, letting the chocolate melt on her tongue.

He nodded, firmly he said, " Alright, let's talk about it."

" Why did you kiss that girl at Mike's party?" Blossom spat out, trying to capture the corner of his eye in an attempt to discern if he was lying. 

Brick scoffed and then laughed, " Do I actually get to explain myself this time, or are you going to tell me I'm lying again? I've answered this question before."

" Don't start with me! Just answer the question Brick," Blossom barked at him, her grip on her styrofoam cup tightened.

" No! I didn't kiss that stupid bitch! She kissed me and I was so fucking wasted that she caught me off guard so my response was slow. I didn't kiss her. I didn't want to kiss her. She threw herself at me, Blossom!" The heat in his voice was just as ferocious as it had been that night two years prior. The ache in his heart had dulled since that night but that didn't mean that the hurt had healed.

" I don't know. You didn't push her away until you saw me," she spoke under her breath. The memories from that night were fuzzy given that they were both a little drunk but the pain was very much tangible. 

Brick made a sharp swerve off to the side of the road causing Blossom to bust her cup, splashing its contents all over the front row of the car. She shrieked, " BRICK! WHAT THE HELL?" 

He threw the car into park off towards the side of the road, " SHE KISSED ME THE MOMENT YOU WALKED IN. YOU SAW EVERYTHING THE SECOND IT HAPPENED. LET'S NOT FORGET WHAT REALLY BROKE US UP BECAUSE THIS WAS NOT MY FAULT, BLOSSOM!"

Taking a moment to strengthen her voice, she turned on him, " Lower your voice when you speak to me. I'm not your brothers who just take whatever you throw at them. Secondly, you knew my work came first. You knew that when we first got together!" 

" I knew your work was important. I respected that your work was important but when that fucking senile Mayor is running you ragged, you're getting antagonized by the morons you save… When I see the girl I love sobbing before classes and going days on end without sleeping, I get worried! I'm gonna make a scene! I'm gonna pull you away from your work and I'm always going to make sure you give yourself a break! You have no idea how painful it was to watch you kill yourself like this! Killing your personality, losing everything that makes you, you!" 

" You had no right to get involved! You just had no right! I could've gotten in serious trouble for blowing off those interviews," she clapped her hands together with each word, the sheer volume made his eardrums pound. 

" BY YOUR OWN ADMISSION, YOU SAID THOSE WERE VOLUNTARY INTERVIEWS! THIS IS WHY WE BROKE UP!," Brick swallowed hard, turning his face away from hers. The silence between them allowed for tempers to cool, " This is why we broke up. You chose work over me. I'm just as hardworking as you are. I know things need to be done and sometimes that means missing dates, not answering every message. That's fine. What it doesn't mean is you had the right to expect me to be okay with getting treated any way you saw fit. You made it clear that I wasn't as important. Also, I didn't want to be around when you would eventually break under the pressure but… I guess there was no avoiding that, " Brick couldn't look at her as his voice broke. He was being suffocated by his own body heat. 

Blossom watched him tighten his jaw but the rest of his features unclenched considerably. His eyes mirrored her exhaustion like he was on the verge of tears. What could she say to him at this point? This wasn't the first time she had heard this complaint before. Now that she was choosing to take a step back from work, what was her excuse? She always had herself on the backburner but she never realized that meant hurting him too. Blossom didn't dare utter another word. There was nothing for her to defend anymore. 

Brick placed his elbows on the steering wheel, leaning his face into his hands. He rubbed his face a few times, " It doesn't matter anymore. I was trying to be there for you last night, not argue about something that doesn't matter anymore. I'm sorry." 

Those last two words cut Blossom deep. What did he have to be sorry for? She's the one who brought it up. Blossom shook her head, her voice small and full of shame, " No, don't apologize. I'm the one who's sorry. It was never my intention to hurt you." 

Hands in his hair, he turned his face towards her. Brick would've never imagined hearing an actual apology from her. Her face gave her emotions away. Everything was finally clicking for her as she realized, she had missed out on so much of her life. Brick knew that feeling all too well so he jested softly, " I'm not saying I forgive you but I can't be mad at you. Kitten, I'm sorry too," He caressed her face, squeezing her chin lightly.

Blossom fought back her tears. This very moment had been boiling for the last two years, it was only a matter of time before they would’ve gotten it out of their systems. Turning away from him, she fished through his glove compartment for the wet wipes she knew he carried around. She cleaned off the leather seat as best she could and spot cleaned her pajama pants, " You did matter. You do matter to me. I just wasn't in the right headspace to appreciate what you were telling me."

His heart jumped at the current tense of her words but didn't want to give into a false hope. She had a lot to think about now and he couldn't complicate that for her, " Yeah. Better late than never, right?”

“Yeah,” her cotton candy eyes explored his facial features carefully, longingly. She moved closer to him, she mumbled against his lips, “Better late than never.” Delicately and intimately, her lips lingered against his before pressing into them with certainty. Her body was relieved of all its tension sending tingles up her spine numbing any sober thoughts. Brick tasted slightly salty from the french fries she had fed him moments before. No longer was she aware that they had pulled over onto the side of some random road, all she was aware of was his hands steadily traveling up her body. 

Brick hesitated to kiss her back. He couldn’t go through that torture of possibly losing her again. As her kiss became more aggressive, he didn’t need any other reassurance. Nothing had changed between them. He squeezed her waist with his left hand while his right held the side of her face, thumb rubbing against her jawline. Her lips were chilled from the milkshake and as his tongue slipped past them, he was reminded how sweet she always tasted. Their kiss became feverish, the windows were gathering condensation between her ice and his heat. That tortured longing was quelled. Satiated for the moment, they pulled apart from one another. Smiles formed and eyes glistened. 

Biting his lip, Brick pulled back onto the road again to drop her off at home. He was electrified from head to toe, completely unaware of anything happening outside of himself. Blossom took hold of his right hand and he gave her’s a gentle embrace.

“You want another fry?” she dug around into the paper bags for their fries.

“Yes, please.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

As he parked into the Utonium’s driveway, Blossom gathered all the wrappers and food. She opened the front door and Buttercup came out to greet them, “Yo, what took so long with my food?!” 

Brick scowled, “ A fucking thank you would be nice. Oh, hi Mr. Utonium.” Brick caught the heated glare the patriarch had given him. Brick shrugged at Blossom who gave him a warning look.

Buttercup combed through the somewhat soggy paper bags and cold food, “ Awe, see? When I reheat this, it’s not going to be as good now. I hope whatever make out session you two had was worth the ruined meal! So are you two finally back together or?”

“Buttercup, that’s none of your business,” Blossom reprimanded her but the rosy tinge on her cheeks gave it away. Luckily, the Professor was focusing intensely on whatever article he was reading.

Bubbles jumped Blossom from behind, “THANK GOODNESS, YOU’RE OKAY! DON’T YOU EVER SCARE US LIKE THAT AGAIN!” The blonde squished Blossom’s face in her palms before she could feel  _ it _ , “Oh!” She giggled pulling Buttercup into the living room. A few seconds later, Buttercup could be heard giggling as well.

Blossom led Brick back past the living room and onto the front step, “ Ugh, I forgot Bubbles can pick up emotions like that. Ignore them. Um, thank you again.”

“Anything for you,” he bit back the urge to call her kitten again with too many people within earshot. Clearing his throat, he gestured towards his car, “So I guess I’ll leave you to that class report, huh?”

Blossom smiled, “ I’ll call you when it’s finished.”

Brick didn’t smile often but this was definitely his most sincere and hopeful smile to date, “ Maybe call me a little earlier in the night.”

“ Maybe,” She waved him off, locking the door behind her. With her back pressed against the red door, she took a deep breath of fresh air. The weight no longer sat on her chest, constricting her from living.

  
  


**Two Nights Later…**

Blossom had been working at her laptop nonstop for the last thirty-six hours in an attempt to finish her paper on time. With two hours until the deadline, she still had another five pages to go before she could even think of editing. Thankfully, her sisters had made themselves scarce but that didn’t stop the weight in her chest from setting in again and she began to panic.  _ No, we said we weren’t going to get like this again. I’m almost done. This is fine. Let’s take a shower and just ease ourself back to work. _ And so she did. The showerhead rinsed away the residual stress that was plaguing her once more. As she stepped out of the shower with her hair dripping wet, she wrapped her pink towel around herself. 

She wandered back into her room and sat in front of her paper once more. Her laptop chimed alerting her of a new email notification from her professor. Curiously, she opened it. It read:

_ Good evening everyone, _

_ I’m afraid I made a huge error in our syllabus. The term paper I thought had been due today at 11:59p is actually due next Friday at 11:59p. Please take the time to really - _

It couldn’t be due next week. Blossom flipped through the pages until she found the listed assignments. The term paper was in fact listed as due tonight at midnight. What mistake- 

Brick tapped on her window, “Hey. Nice look.”

Blossom tightened the towel around her body, “ It’s not polite to just drop in on someone so late at night! Especially at their window!” 

Brick pushed his way in, and sat on her bed, “ I’m not looking, promise. So did you see the email?”

“Yeah! My syllabus says it’s due tonight and … and… I don’t get what changed?” She was visibly puzzled, her head tilted to the side as Brick sat there unfazed.

“ Hm,” he nodded his head, “Yeah, it’s very strange. Almost as if someone hacked into the school’s portal, changed all the dates around, and emailed the professor that he had the wrong dates.” Brick shook his head sarcastically, “It’s a real head-scratcher.”

“Brick, you can’t do that! Do you know how much trouble you could get into? Seriously, what were you thinking?” Blossom paced by him forgetting that she was only in her towel.

“I was thinking that maybe if you happened to have some free time, you would like to go out with me tonight? Go for a late-night ride,” the grin on his face was innocent, puppy dog eyes practically pleading for her to say yes but that couldn’t hide the glint of mischief that sparked within them.

“You are completely reckless! The fact that you even considered this as an option is beyond me!” Blossom dug through a few of her drawers taking care not to let her towel drop, “ Honestly, as sweet and thoughtful as this is, you could be jeopardizing your entire college career and I know how much this means to you!”

Brick rolled her eyes as she continued nagging him, “You know, two years might’ve passed but nothing’s changed.”

Blossom closed the bathroom door behind her to get dressed as she raised her voice, “ Not to mention how completely unethical it is to mess with someone’s memories like this! He’s an older man and now he must be worried about his cognition all because you wanted to take me out on a date, Brick!” She came out in thick grey winter leggings, pink tee-shirt, and pink feather slippers, “Now, come on. Let’s go out.”

Brick’s eyes widened, “ So I’m actually getting a yes? What about your rant just now?”

Blossom straddled his lap, wrapping her arms around his neck, “Duh, I have to give you that rant. It’s part of my job. I’m not going to turn down a perfectly good date.”

Brick gripped her waist as his thumb trailed her curves, “ That’s more like it. So what time am I dropping you back off?”

“ Did you pack sweets, a blanket, and pillows for us?” she leaned down, planting her plump lips against his. She could feel a growl building up from his throat.

“Of course, I did,” He furrowed his brows. His lips drifted down her jaw, stopping at the base of her neck, “ How are we going to drive around without that stuff?”

“Then I guess you’ll drop me off at some point tomorrow,” she suggested seductively. She winked at him before climbing off of him and out her window, “Close my window behind you, please.”

Brick’s heart fluttered at the unexpected turn of events. That was the Blossom he knew and loved. They would pick up right where they left off as opposed to starting anew. Closing the window behind him, he joined her in the car. With a quick peck on his cheek, he sped off, leaving all their cares behind for a night of fun.

**Author's Note:**

> HI!! I was super stoked about writing this one and I can't even remember what inspired this piece. Also, the psych major in me sorta came out... So whether you enjoyed this or not, please remember to take care of yourself, be kind to yourself, create healthy boundaries. Put yourself first!


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